It is important that the Oireachtas marks appropriately the occasion of 100 years of women's suffrage in Ireland. Before raising a couple of other significant historical events we should also remember, I find it astonishing and highly ironic that Fianna Fáil Party Senators have complained about leaking pipes and water shortages in Dublin. I remind them that the purpose of establishing Irish Water was to invest in water infrastructure and modernise the water network. What did Fianna Fáil do during the general election campaign? It undermined all the progress made in this area in the interest of populist politics. It is a little rich, therefore, to hear Senators from that party complain during a crisis when all of these matters were meant to have been addressed by now.

I raise a significant event and an important person in Irish history. This day 180 years ago - on 7 March 1848 - our national flag, the tricolour, was flown for the first time at the Wolfe Tone Confederate Club at 33 The Mall, Waterford City, by the Irish patriot, Thomas Francis Meagher. In April 1848, Meagher stated: "The white in the centre signifies a lasting truce between Orange and Green, and I trust that beneath its folds the hands of Irish Protestants and Irish Catholics may be clasped in generous and heroic brotherhood." The Seanad should pause and reflect on these significant words which are as relevant today as they were in 1848. This Republic should respect all traditions and religions and we should remember the legacy of Thomas Francis Meagher, a Waterford man.

Another significant point in history was the centenary yesterday of the death of the great Irish parliamentarian, John Redmond. This week a number of commemorative events will be held in Dublin, Waterford and Wexford to mark Redmond's death. As Senators will be aware, Redmond was the leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party for more than 18 years and made a significant contribution to politics in this country. He was involved in negotiations with landlords to transfer land ownership to tenant farmers. This legacy endures and should be recognised.

Redmond was often criticised for his interest in the British war effort. In modern Ireland, we have a better understanding of the reasons Irish people fought in the First World War and we must respect those reasons. Whether we agree or disagree with Redmond's views, we should remember and mark his legacy both in Parliament and the country. His life will be marked in Waterford this weekend in a conference featuring a number of important speakers who will do his memory justice.

The scale of community spirit or meitheal was evident throughout the recent storm and is still much in evidence. The Garda, ambulance service, fire service, Defence Forces and other front-line staff rightly received much praise but an entire army of other people, who I would describe as good neighbours and great citizens, also deserves praise. Many people were left on their own, cut off entirely from the family and friends who normally visit but were unable to do so. After four or five days, the solitude and sense of confinement and isolation will have been overwhelming. Let us imagine how those who experience this every day, with no end in sight, must feel. Last year, as part of a campaign to highlight the impact of loneliness a young man, Joseph Lindoe, spent a week alone at home in the United Kingdom to find out what it was like for the thousands of people who go this long without speaking to anyone. Mr. Lindoe did not have access to the Internet or a telephone and did not have any means of communicating with other people. He documented this time on video and in his own words he felt "truly trapped". Mr. Lindoe was able to count down his days until freedom but for many people who are lonely or isolated, there is no light at the end of the tunnel. I will post his harrowing video on social media later and I urge all Senators to take a moment to watch it.

I echo the sentiments expressed by Mr. Seán Moynihan, chief executive officer of the Alone charity, with whom I worked on the loneliness task force. Mr. Moynihan has asked all of us to maintain the community spirit evident in the past week. We all have a better understanding now of what it is like for some people all year around who cannot get out, do not have company and lack some of the supports and services they need.

On behalf of my party, I welcome the St. Brigid's home school liaison team and members of other teams from the Coombe area who are visiting the Seanad today.